Totally agree AKB…….plus the chesterfields are really comfy and I'm not having to fuss about worrying about it when kids put their feet up on them (or me too for that matter!!)…

Next job to tackle…..Pantry fit out.

I placed my order last week for the flat pack - after 3 weeks of very confusing online ordering. It's only a fairly small space but I would like to have our microwave, kettle and toaster in there as well as a bar fridge for hubby's beer. I have ordered a bench to match the kitchen, and some open shelving wall/pantry units as there really won't be the room for opening doors etc…..I chose 320mm deep shelves as I have a tendency to lose things at the back of deeper shelving.

I have my fingers crossed that my measurements and understanding of the online ordering will all come together and match the image I have in my head for it!!

I used a site called "Cabinetsondemand" and will follow through with our experience once the delivery arrives.

Just thought to add……..I resorted to designing and online ordering of it myself after I received a quote from a local kitchen company with the word "budget" in their title. Their quote for supply in flat pack form was $4600……….my final cost by ordering online was $1200. The only real change I made was to do away with a drawer unit and replace it with an open cabinet…..crazy difference hey??

hehe….I'm glad it wasn't just me being easily confused! When I rang them to ask some questions the fellow said that they were re-doing their website to make it easier…….maybe you'll encounter the new "easy" site when you look again

There are only 3 things left for us to do in the kitchen - repair cornice around range hood, hang the cupboard door over the fridge and fit out the pantry......

I thought I'd post some pictures of our "nearly complete" kitchen. Now don't expect high design, expensive cabinetry, stone benchtops or WOW effects.....what we have is a simple, basic kitchen. I didn't want any overhead cupboards because I hate cleaning them. It leaves it looking a bit bare but we don't mind. The kitchen came with the PAAL house kit....I just chose colours/handles/profiles etc... The oven and dishwasher are both 900mm wide and we refer to the dishwasher as my husbands girlfriend because he loves it so much hehe......it's great not having to bend down to stack/unstack it (and having lived for 2 years without one we really appreciate it!)

Here we go..........

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Adding to my eclectic theme....though I tend to think this looks slightly gothic, we hung this mirror in our front hallway over the chest of drawers my father made out of a couple old school industrial arts cabinets years ago.

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And lastly my water set.....strictly for display - family warned NOT to use these hehehe

hehe….I'm glad it wasn't just me being easily confused! When I rang them to ask some questions the fellow said that they were re-doing their website to make it easier…….maybe you'll encounter the new "easy" site when you look again

Yaaayyy! What a milestone, an (almost) completed kitchen. I love your splashback and cupboard door profiles. We also don't have any overhead cupboards in our kitchen (well actually we've got 1 little display one in one corner) because I can't reach stuff in them and my hubby is tall and hates hitting his head on them when he's prepping stuff on the bench. Our kitchen looks a bit bare because of not having them too, but I don't mind.

I'm still in love with your floors, you've got a beautiful mix of colours and patterns in the timber. Thanks for posting all the photos of your furniture. It looks like you're doing a great job of decorating. We still haven't finished putting pictures up on the walls etc. Bet you can't wait for the pantry cupboards/shelves to come. Good things come to those who wait!

Well done on the painted french door too, it looks great! You're lucky having the plastic stuff on the glass, our glass double doors didn't come with any plastic on the glass. I had to tape then scrape off the bits that went under the tape. You've got me all inspired to update my thread now with some more pics.

Is your house very echo-y? Our house is so loud and echo-y, especially with kids playing in it. It's probably the thing I hate most about our house. I looked into acoustic art that's meant to absorb sound but its a lot out of our price range. Just wondered how your house is noise wise?Tam

Edited to add, also LOVE your bar stools. Do you mind saying where you got them from? Ours were cheapo $30 ones and they've already broken and we're looking for some new ones.

Hey TamK!! Where have you been???? Yes, please update your thread…..it's been a while!

I got the bar stools from Gumtree, I didn't want a generic type - they had to be timber, with backs (but not big high backs) and they had to be comfortable……..(I have gotten into the habit of trolling it each day.….but now that we have pretty much everything we need I can't seem to stop - will probably see more things I WANT lol - it drives my husband insane hehe) I have enjoyed looking and finding interesting pieces on there and have found some real bargains. The 4 stools cost $45 shhhhhhh….don't want to come across as a cheapskate……."thrifty" is how I like to think of myself ….maybe I will put up a post of my bargains…..got my eldest daughter a beautiful roll top desk after 12 months of looking for $100…..hmmm, stay tuned.

We find that our walls are pretty thin and noise travels through them easily…..ie: TV sound goes back through the wall behind it and is clearly heard in that room. Should have put in some sound proofing when building, but not much we can do about it now. I don't find it echoey though….if anything it seems to be a very quiet house (except for the kids and dog sometimes!) I think the flooring dampens the noise - we laid it on a full layer of ply rather than on battens, so even walking on it in shoes is a quiet experience….but I'm no noise expert (oh…..that's a lie - I own a car audio shop so am responsible for a fair amount of "noise" travelling around doof doof)

I've started hanging some pictures up too…….but the walls still look so bare. Probably need some BIG statement pieces……oh, there's something I can now look on Gumtree for…..

So I got to thinking about putting up a post with all my Gumtree bargains.....most of these items appear in previous photos, but having them all together remind me of the mammoth effort it was to get some of these things.....carrying heavy furniture down narrow staircases etc.....what an effort. Anyway, I do value comments....and as I have most of the base pieces sorted I will happily take on board any advice as to how to finish furnishing this house. I just don't have any real knack for the finishing touches......help!

Gothic Mirror - $35....I think it originally had a buffet that it belonged to,,,Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Share

Swoopy Chairs - for lack of a better description. $200 for a pair of them. Not terribly comfortable and the do take up a lot of room...might consider getting rid of them, but have seen these chairs in quite a few magazines so am holding onto them only because of that heheLike ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Share

Sea chest/coffee table - $30. The "old" smell inside almost takes your breath away....so we keep it closed. Someone must have attempted to remove the brown paint prior to it coming into my possession.....I like the unfinished look of it - plus it makes a great coffee table as it doesn't show up any marks!Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Share

Chesterfield Wing back chairs and groovy table - Chairs were $380 for the pair and the glass table $50. They live in my study after about 2 years at work in my office....my regular visitors miss them as they are very comfy.Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Share

Casual Dining area table and buffet - $500. Previous owners had owned it for over 40 years....lovely condition and oiled instead of varnished which I love!Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Share

Oak dining suite for the formal dining room - $405 and a very long day to collect them and bring them home....Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Share

Cedar Chest of drawers from a friend 20 years ago - restored about 10 years ago....not practical as the drawer runners are very worn (proved to be a good hiding spot for presents before my children discovered it) and the artwork was my grandmothers, so a sentimental piece.Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Share

Rolltop Desk....$100 and soooo many drawers. My daughter loves it as she is a stationery collector/hoarder!!Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Share

One of the last things we had to do inside was the pantry fit out. I mentioned before that we had received a quote from a local kitchen company to supply in flat pack form for a price of $4600. I decided to put the effort in on the "Cabinetsondemand" website and order the stuff online - cost came in a little under $1200 so well worth the effort as the online ordering system was very confusing.

Once I placed the order and paid 25% deposit it was about a 3 week wait for delivery. We opted to pick the order up from the depot here in Newcastle to save a few more $$'s.

Here it is unpacked:Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Share

And here is a picture of the empty pantry....a bit hard to get a good photo as it's a small space - 1600 x 1500..Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Share

The three main cabinets were assembled pretty quickly. The hardware they supplied was to the exact number required LOL - no room for errors!!Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Share

We then spent the next few hours positioning the cabinets and benchtop in place. Just have to get the splashback tiled and it's all done. The whole experience of doing this ourselves has been good. Cabinets on Demand were good to deal with and the product they supplied was great.....it's turned out EXACTLY as I had pictured it in my head when designing it....of course now that it's installed I can see areas that I could have designed better but oh well.....it will do us!!Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ ShareLike ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Share

I would recommend it....and the bottle of wine might add to your creative process!! But you've had some plans done previously haven't you? Just try to duplicate those. We are very happy with how ours turned out and it was reasonably easy to assemble.

Can anyone point me in the right direction - we are trying to track down a supplier of these PYRAMID PIERCAPS....there is a local brick/paver manufacturer who can make them to order at a price of $110 each, but I'm sure there is a supplier out there who keeps these things on hand and a more reasonable price.......

You must be so proud, you've done an amazing job! I love your chesterfields, I'd love a wingback or two like those in our main bedroom if we have room/can find some at a reasonable price. I'm always on the lookout on eBay. Def shop around on the concrete ones if that's what you want, they look nice sealed & painted if you are not going for the stone. We have 2 here that we will use on the front gate. I think we picked them up for around $50'ea and they are quiet large.

Patience is a virtue.....remember the mess with our range hood installation? Well we finally got around to getting a plasterer in to fix it up. TBH we pretty much forgot about it and it was only when visitors commented on the unfinished state of it that we were reminded. Anyway it's nice to have that finished and once I get around to bringing the ladder in and giving the range a good shine up it will look great.

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Another little job that's been finished off is the lining of the verandahs.....well, they were lined ages ago - it's just the quad strip around the edges that's been completed.